Project based learning is great for developing knowhow but is bad for motivation.

Project-based learning is significantly better than reading or lectures.

But often project-based learning has to be pre-established projects to teach you.

You want to learn how to build a particular type of Japanese woodworking joinery to create a coffee table in a particular style for your apartment… but the pre-baked project is to build a birdhouse.

You care about your goal, but don't care about the birdhouse.

So you give up.

But LLMs can allow creating projects that are bespoke to the thing you actually want to do.

With intrinsic motivation, and a project to help you build the skills, you can learn more effectively.

This riff is based on ideas Andy Matuschak and my friend Kasey Klimes have been separately exploring.